Shadows Of The Rejected Luna

~ELARA~ I always thought the Moon Goddess was kind, but as my fated mate looked at me with pure disgust, I realized she was a sadist. In the Eclipse pack, most wolves carry this scent of cedar, spice or something wild. Me? Nothing. I’m just a blank space. And everyone here is happy to fill that emptiness with their hate. They call me 'Scentless Mutt.' It’s the only name I’ve ever known, and they never miss a chance to shove it down my throat. ​I was lugging a heavy tray of greasy bones from last night's feast, arms already burning, still waiting for my wolf to decide I was worth showing up for. Twenty-two years, and she was apparently still on vacation. ​CLANG-A-LANG! Jax didn’t just kick the tray. He stepped onto the edge of it, tilting it slowly until the bones slid into the dirt. He watched them fall with a look of mock pity. "You're still trying, Elara," he sighed, leaning in close enough that I could smell the stale ale on his breath. "That’s the saddest part. You carry thes

The sweet smell lingered on my tongue when I woke, but the fear was gone. Only heavy fog remained, weighing my limbs like lead.I wasn’t in the hollow anymore. I wasn’t running.Soft furs cradled me inside a cave. Firelight danced on stone walls. My side didn’t scream when I shifted, someone had cleaned the gash and wrapped it in herb-scented linen.“Don’t try to shift,” a low voice rumbled from the shadows. “The mist keeps your wolf quiet. You need rest.”I bolted upright, my heart hammering. The memories of the night came rushing back, the rejection, the hunt, the gold eyes in the dark. A man stepped into the firelight. He was tall, shoulders wide, dark hair falling messy over his forehead. No shirt. Scars crossed his ribs, shoulder, forearm marks that said he’d faced things that should’ve killed him and walked away anyway.But damn… he was beautiful.Rough, dangerous beautiful. The kind that hits you in your gut because you know this man could break you in half and some stupid par

~KAIROS' POV~ My wolf was trying to tear me apart from the inside. That’s the only way I can describe it. For two straight days he’d been snarling nonstop, pacing behind my ribs like a caged animal, claws scraping my heart every time I tried to pull in a full breath. "GO. FIND. HER!". I was sitting in the dark of my chambers staring at the moon through the tall window. It hung there looking cold, like it knew exactly what it had done to me. I’d stood in the circle at the feast. I’d said the words out loud. Called her a monster in front of the whole pack. Banished her. So why did it feel like I was the one locked in a cage that kept getting smaller? I held my hands up in front of my face. They were shaking. Badly. The mate bond felt like someone had wrapped a steel wire around my soul and was yanking it tighter every few minutes. I could feel her everything. The spike of terror when the guards started chasing her. The sting of sharp rocks cutting into her palms and knees. Wor

~KAIROS' POV~I woke up screaming. Not a clean, sharp yell but more like something ripping its way out of me. It felt like every scream Elara had ever swallowed was clawing up my throat at the same time. My ribs ached deep, the kind of hurt you get when someone’s kicked you over and over. My stomach was hollow, like I hadn’t eaten in days, maybe weeks.I tried to sit up. The room tilted hard. I was in my own bed, but the silk sheets scraped my skin like cheap burlap. Everything felt wrong.> my wolf whimpered. He sounded small. Broken. Not the proud thing that used to strut inside me like he owned the forest.The door flew open. My mother, Mara rushed in. She looked terrified, but as soon as she saw me awake, the panic smoothed away fast, replaced by that calm, porcelain face she wore for the world.“Kairos! Thank the Moon. The guards brought you back unconscious.” She sat on the edge of the bed and reached for my forehead. I flinched. Her touch felt... wrong. It felt like col

Kairos POVThe council room felt suffocatingly quiet.Peaceful. It used to be the one place that actually calmed me downBut that was back when my mom’s special tea kept my head foggy. But now the tea was wearing off, and every tiny sound hit me like a sharp poke. Pens scratching on paper. Old guys breathing heavy. Even the clock ticking on the wall made me want to yell.But the silence wasn’t the worst thing. The worst was the girl who wasn’t here.I could feel her. A cold, sharp tug right in the middle of my chest. Somewhere far away, Elara was shaking from the cold. The mate bond was wide open now, and it dumped every feeling she had straight into me. I sat on my throne, teeth chattering because she was freezing. My hands trembled because she was scared.“Alpha? Are you even listening?”I jerked my head up. Elder Silas stared at me like an annoyed vulture. He leaned forward, hands flat on the fancy wooden table.“The Shadow Wolf is gone,” he snapped. “She killed our hunters. She’s